How Losing by 48 Points Taught me About Resilience
Results don’t really matter.
Your attitude matters more.
Today, my basketball team lost by 48 points.
Okay to be fair, we were heavily outnumbered.
We only had 6 players, while they had around 10.
And not to mention…
I just recovered from a sprained ankle.
Add all of that up and we have one 40-minute out-of-breath disaster.
Anyway…
Around the end of the 3rd quarter…
The lead widened from 10 points to 30 points.
So unfortunately…
My teammates lost hope.
- They stopped trying that much
- There was no more energy
- Shooters were hesitant to shoot
But me, on the other hand.
I didn’t care.
Instead of trying less, I tried harder.
I ran faster than everyone else.
Took more shots even though
Celebrated more.
… all with a semi-sprained ankle and a 40-ish point deficit.
Well.
We didn’t win. We lost badly.
But I was able to score around 10 points and hit an and-one.
While you might think that’s pretty selfish of me to do.
Oh Arlo just cares about himself but not helping his team win!
Look. I have my reasons.
It’s simply this:
I’m just so happy I got to play.
Think about it.
If I was 80 years old, would I be busy worrying about my win rate?
OH I only won 47% of my games, but not 58% of them. My life was such a failure. *dies*
That’s ridciulous! (wait how do you spell rediculous?)
Instead…
I’d be looking back, reminiscing all the times I enjoyed playing basketball.
I’d be happy thinking about how it was the highlight of my teenage years.
- The struggles I faced
- The people I’ve met
- The girls I’ve impressed (okay I’ll stop).
Yes, winning is important.
Yes, you should strive to be the best.
Yes, it’s okay to feel bad when you lose.
But if you only obsessed over the scoreboard without having the right attitude (like my teammates)?
That’s one sad path to suffering and self-depreciation.
Trust me. I’ve done this 1,000 times.
So here’s what you do instead.
Stop staring at the scoreboard.
Start smiling as you immerse yourself in the game you’re playing.
Because let’s face it…
Who attracts a date? The desperate one? Or the emotionally secure person?
Who gets good grades? The desperate one? Or the calm and rational person?
Who gets clients? The desperate one? Or the person with an abundant mindset?
Exactly! The person who focuses on the game rather than the score is more likely to win anyway.
And coincidentally…
This approach is how I closed a $1k/month client the past weekend.
It was an inbound DM from a guy who didn’t even follow me (hahaha).
He ended up in my message requests. At first I thought it was an AI-spam. But then I thought
“Hey why not give him a chance”
We spoke a bit, I overdelivered for free. I didn’t even PITCH him.
- No DM script
- No sales call
- No bananas (sorry Alex)
All I did was help him and have the ATTITUDE of wanting to help him.
The result?
He wanted ME to close HIM.
Not the other way around (which is an amazing feeling if you know how it feels to land clients).
So remember.
All your losses…
All your rejections…
All your 48 points-deficit games…
They’re all a test to see if you can stay grounded and have the right attitude.
Whether or not you pass that test, is all up to you.
Don’t be desperate for results.
Your attitude matters more.
Arlo.
P.S. I was freaking tired that game.
P.S.S. I’ve launched my 7 Day Creator Roadmap at $22. It’s a course that’ll help you land your first free/paid client. After 10 people get it, I’ll bump the price to $42. Get it today:
